Summer vacation will end early for several high school youngsters Monday morning, but it’s a time they’ve generally been looking forward to.

Schools that didn’t conduct spring football, mainly in Class 4A and below, will start preseason practices without pads, including three Amarillo metro teams.

The most intriguing sessions could be at Bushland, which enters this season with an entirely new look. Not only do the Falcons have to replace a talented corps of graduated seniors, they’ll do so with a new coach, Jimmy Thomas, who comes from Danbury to replace Steven Flowers, who went to West Texas High.

Thomas isn’t as concerned about conditioning as he is getting his system in place when the sessions start at 8 a.m.

“I think we’ve done a pretty good job of making sure the majority of the kids are in shape before two-a-days,” Thomas said. “We’re going to try to install a lot of things before we’re in pads. It’s a big learning day and it’s going to start in the classroom.”

What Thomas is facing with Bushland this year is similar to what Phillip Wiggins faced at River Road last year. Wiggins was in his first season at the school last year when two-a-days began, and now there’s a little more familiarity within the program.

Wiggins said that conditioning also isn’t his biggest concern entering two-a-days starting at 8 a.m.

“With summer strength and conditioning and everything else, if kids don’t come to two-a-days in shape, it’s their own fault,” Wiggins said. “The biggest focus is to make sure you’re fundamentally sound. I’ve never been real fancy since the installation of what we do is really pretty simple.”

Highland Park coach Craig Shores isn’t as concerned about his players remembering a system. In his third year at Highland Park, Shores has a foundation in place after the Hornets made the playoffs for the first time in a decade last season.

Shores thinks that conditioning is where the plan for the season starts when Highland Park starts practice at 8 a.m.

“I think once you bring kids back in, the emphasis is that they’re in good enough shape to carry pads,” Shores said. “These four days without pads you do your installing of things. The difference is that we’re putting in some stuff at a higher level.”

Among the schools opening practice today is Wellington, who will be the first Texas Panhandle school in five seasons to enter a season as a defending state champion.